


Last Melody, First Step

by WanderingTheRailroads



Category: Shigatsu Wa Kimi no Uso
Genre: F/M, Feels, Gen, Good End, Past Character Death, currently airing series, speculative ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-01
Updated: 2014-11-01
Packaged: 2018-02-23 12:36:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2547707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WanderingTheRailroads/pseuds/WanderingTheRailroads
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She stands there invisible in the place his mother once sat, and their melody flows forth, together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Last Melody, First Step

Last Melody, First Step

 

“Hey, Friend A, do you think you’ll be able to hear the piano properly ever again?”

 

\---

 

“And now…Arima Kousei.”

 

He trudges forward towards a grand piano that seems so distant, each footstep heavy upon the stage.  Far back across rows and rows of seats, Tsubaki and Watari are being lectured by an elderly gentleman on the sin of sleeping through performances.  Further up front, a rather snooty-looking music critic is staring at Kousei with a gaze that suggests disdain.

As he takes his seat at the piano a hushed silence descends over the crowd, but Kousei doesn’t notice any of this. All there is now is a silent blackness, beneath glaring spotlights.

 

_Fingers on the keys. Perfect. Just try to remain calm._

 

Kousei starts off by-the-book, fingers sweeping over the keys in perfect form as Saint-Saens’ _Introduction and Rondo_ issues forth from the piano. The crowd is rapturous, brimming with excitement at his immaculate translation of the notes into music.

 

 _Perfection. But it all feels so hollow,_ he muses as the music swells and dips.  _I…no, focus. Don’t think about it. Play from…_

 

In a split-second Kousei’s fingers seemingly grow numb, his hearing dulled. He attempts to steady himself futilely as the tears begin to fall again, staining his ivory keys.

 

 _She wouldn’t want this. Don’t lose control. You’re strong now._ _Strong. No. Please. Not now._

 

In the shadows, an empty wheelchair lies turned on its side.

 

 _Not now. NO!_ In the audience, they are whispering again.

 

_I knew it._

_He’s still not himself._

_After she died, he…_

_What a pity._

 

Then her voice, halting, cuts through the din. _Kou…sei. Come on. Play. You can do it, can’t you?_

“…I can’t do this. I can’t.”

_Why not? You’re a musician, Kousei._

“I just…can’t. Please. Leave me alone! I’m finished as a musician!”

_You can’t hear the music, right? Then play from your heart._

“Even my heart is faltering. I’m a failure. Weak.”

_No, you’re not._

 

“Wha-” Kousei’s protestations wither, a familiar violin’s strains breaking his train of thought.

_Let’s go! Make sure you can keep up, alright?_

 

The late Kaori Miyazono and very much alive Arima Kousei are united once more in performance.

 

Now Kousei is matching her tempo. She speeds up, and he is pulled along in her pace.

Now the song has changed, to an original composition he wrote with her before she died.

Now his vision is clearing, and he sees Tsubaki smile warmly for the first time in months.

Now he is playing not for Kaori, not for the crowds or Tsubaki and Watari, but for the song he hears in his heart.

Now the music critic remembers Kaori Miyazono and her brief but dynamic musical debut. “Is he…playing an original composition in her memory? Even without a violin accompaniment…”

Now the crowd applauds.

 

Sweat-drenched, Kousei bows to an audience enthralled.

 

\----

 

“That was fun, wasn’t it?” Kaori smiles warmly at him, their fingers intertwined.

“I...guess so.”

“What are you going to call our piece, though?”

“Hmm….”

“I know! What about ‘Your Lie in April’? I mean, you did lie to them about  performing solo!” Smirking, she breaks away and skips towards the stage exit door, which Kousei notices has a bright light shining from somewhere beyond.

“Hey, Kousei, I’ve got to go now. Promise me you’ll be alright?”

Hesitantly, he replies.

“Wait, you have to leave already? I’ll never see you again, right?”

“Maybe someday, ‘Friend A’. I’ll try to visit!”

“I certainly hope so. Let’s perform again when we meet, on a larger stage this time.”

Kaori steps forward into a doorway filled with light.

\---

“I don’t know. But I guess it’s all about taking the first step, right?"

**Author's Note:**

> Dear God, I was thoroughly unsatisfied with this fic. Oh well. Can't be arsed to redo it >_>
> 
> Behold, the first Shigatsu Wa Kimi no Uso fanfic to grace Ao3 :D. I'm sorry it wasn't something better-written, but...


End file.
